What led to tennis player Radhika Yadav's murder by father
What's the story
In a shocking incident, 25-year-old state-level tennis player Radhika Yadav was shot dead by her father, Deepak Yadav, at their home in Gurugram on Thursday. He allegedly fired five shots at her, with three hitting her, in the kitchen of their Sector 57 residence around 10:30am. Investigators have now learned that Radhika opened a tennis academy to coach children after suffering a shoulder injury during a match a few days ago, which her father disapproved of.
Motive revealed
How running the academy became an issue
Her father wanted her to close the tennis academy because he was angry that people in the family's hometown of Wazirabad made fun of him for living off the income from his daughter's tennis academy. However, she refused his request. "He wanted her to shut down the academy, but she refused. He finally shot her dead over the same dispute," Assistant Commissioner of Police Yashwant Yadav said.
Emotional turmoil
What Deepak told the police
Deepak told police he had been battling depression for the last 15 days due to social criticism about his daughter's career and earnings. In the FIR, he said that he unable to bear the humiliation that hurt his 'pride.' "When I used to go to Wazirabad village to get milk, people used to taunt me, saying that I live off my daughter's earnings. This troubled me a lot. Some people even questioned my daughter's character," Deepak told the police.
Statement
'I shot her three times from behind'
"Because of this tension, I took out my licensed revolver, and when my daughter Radhika was cooking in the kitchen, I shot her three times from behind." The FIR also adds that Radhika's mother, Manju, refused to give a statement to the police, claiming she was suffering from a fever at the time of the incident and had not seen anything.
Ongoing probe
Other angles being looked into
The police are also looking into other angles in the case, such as Deepak's objection to a possible affair or an Instagram reel. Radhika was a promising athlete, having participated in several tournaments, including matches against Viswanadh Harshini, Bougrat Maelys, Sun Yifan, Maruri Suhitha, and Mashabayeva Dilnaz. She graduated from Scottish High International School, cleared her Class 12 commerce examinations in 2018, and had taken up tennis early in her academic years.